My first suggestion is to forget about the Hurricane. Tonya Ketchum will fill you full of lies and you will be lucky to get half of what you order. They currently have 18 indictments against them for fraud. As far as the Hurricane machine goes it will never mix the amount of mulch that they advertise. I have one and know what I'm talking about. There is another company selling a machine called a Super Seeder. Its the same Hurricane machine made in the same town and I think by the same people altho of that I'm not 100% sure but they do have the same phone number.
As to which machine works the best, first you must decide what kind of seeding you intend to do. If you are just going to do lawns and arenot worried about erosion control you should be able to have good results with either machine. You will probably get a lot of replies about how a jet machine wont spray the heavy mulch rates that is neccisary to get grass to grow and people telling you to get a mechanical machine. I disagree with these types of statements. Knowledge of your soil and doing the proper prep work and chooseing the proper seed will win out over mulch rates everytime. I do believe that there are times when heavy mulch rates are neccisary but I have never understood how putting down all the mulch in one pass leads to better seed to soil contact. In fact putting down 2-3000 lbs of mulch in one pass will cause twice as much seed to be supended inside and on top of the mulch as there is in contact with the ground so I always reccommend doing a two step seeding by applying one layer of seed and mulch during the first step and then going over the area a second time with just mulch whenever a heavy mulch rate is required. When seeding this way you insure that you have more seed in contact with the ground and no seed laying on top of the mulch unprotected. You will also find that you can use less seed with a two step seeding process than you use with just a one step process because the seed laying on top of the mulch doesnt grow anyways.
Now if you are considering doing erosion control work you would probably be better off with a mechanical agitated machine, Easylawn and Turboturf both sell mechanical machines as does Turfmaker and Finn and Bowie and several others. Another factor you should consider is tank size. The larger the tank the more area you can seed before refilling. To large a machine and you are just pulling around unproductive weight, to small a machine and you will spend more time getting water than you will seeding. You also dont want to get a bigger machine than your truck will handle. 1000 gal machines on a trailer and you will probably have to have a CDL license to pull it and maybe even a tanker endoresment but you usually can haul a 1000 gal machine on the back of a big enough truck and not need the CDL.
Best advise is to learn your soil and seed types for your area, determine adverage size areas you intend to seed and then purchase a machine that will meet your needs.

We use a Finn, competitor uses Turbo Turf, they both do the job, We are a little faster, but we have a bigger machine. I didn't think that he made a good decision at first, but it works, and Turbo Turf is only about a 45 minute drive from our area.

Just for info, the International Association of Hydroseeding Professionals will be having their first organizational meeting Jan 31th in Columbus Ohio at the Hampton Inn off hyway 161 at 1pm. Every hydroseeder operator, requardless of size company or type machine used, is invited to attend. If you are planning on being in Columbus for the Power Show stop in and say hello.

well Muddstopper you just may have saved me alot of money and heartache. Iwas sold on their machine and the custom trailer they were to build for my hydroseeder. now i'm back to square one. Does anyone have any thoughts on Easy Lawn machines. Their salesman seem to be somewhat helpful although i've never met them in person. thanks you guys! Hope to here from you again!

Originally posted by muddstopper Just for info, the International Association of Hydroseeding Professionals will be having their first organizational meeting Jan 31th in Columbus Ohio at the Hampton Inn off hyway 161 at 1pm. Every hydroseeder operator, requardless of size company or type machine used, is invited to attend. If you are planning on being in Columbus for the Power Show stop in and say hello.

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Gonna be at the show that day so I might just look you up. Are you going to the show or staying at the Hampton for the day?

I would check out EasyLawn. I got alot of info about their line at a trade show the other week. They have an awesome jet aggitation machine with lots of power and high flow rates. Their 650 gal trailer model jet agitation machine is running around $15,600. Has a 22hp Robin Subaru Engine, 4"x3" HPV7 pump, 85psi/620 gpm max with an operating pressure of 70psi. Mulch capacitiy of 240-280 lbs. Electric reel and turret are also included with 100ft of 1 1/4" hose. I would suggest you get 200' of hose however.

Dirt, I will be staying at a different hotel but I intend to go to the show for a while that morning. I have to leave early Sunday and drive about 500 miles.

NC, Have you seen the Easylawn machine work? $15 grand sounds awful high for a jet machine. whoops, scrolled back up and seen the trailer and hose reel. Still for 15 grand I'd sell him my 1000 gal bowie and the truck its mounted on then he could do lawns and erosion control.
Disclamer, this isnt an offer to sell but, for 15 grand, I sure would think about it.